Tickle Fight Club
by Thefoxmage
Summary: When their parents threaten a serious grounding to the next children who dared start a fist fight in their house, the Loud Children decide to try an alternative. However, not everyone is pleased with this alternative.


Tickle fight club

Within the Loud House, seeing a lot of activity was commonplace. However, it wasn't often that all the activity happened in a single place. In this case, that single place was Lori and Leni's room. All eleven children were gathered in the room, each doing their own thing while they waited for something: Leni filed her nails, Luna tuned her guitar, Luan played with her ventriloquist dummy Mr Coconuts, Lynn Jr looked bored, Lincoln had Lily on his lap and tried to amuse her with a little pattycake, Lucy just sat there quietly, Lana was chatting with Charles the dog and Lola was admiring herself in her hand mirror. Lori, however, was standing at her desk, looking over a few papers while Lisa sat beside the desk with a notebook and pen handy. Once the eldest of the Loud siblings seemed satisfied with what she was reading, she struck a shoe against her desk, trying to get their attention. While she tried to maintain order, Lincoln looked over his shoulder at the viewers at home.

"Hey there. I guess you're wondering what this is all about. Well, let me tell you. Earlier today, there was a big fight among the sisters. Now, this isn't unusual; fights happen all the time. But it's what happened during this fight that made it a big deal…"

Earlier that evening…

The Loud Kids had just finished dinner and had made a beeline for the living room to watch some TV. Lincoln had just barely made it past most of his sisters, vaulted over the back of the couch and landed on the middle cushion. He smiled and reached for the remote. However, Luan scooped up the remote first. "Dang it…" Lincoln grumbled.

"Sorry, bro. But it's first to the clicker, not first on your butt." She commented before she playfully stuck her tongue out at him. While she was distracted, Lynn swiped the channel changer.

"Well, you can park your butt now, 'cause it's my turn to choose tonight." The sporty sister said while she twirled the remote.

"It's true. She did earn a claim tonight for forgoing a hockey playoff match so we could watch the season finale of 'Dream Boat'." Lisa explained, taking a seat on the chair. There was some grumbles from some of her sisters as Lincoln and Luan shrugged in a "fair enough" kinda way.

"Least I got the best seat in the house. I'll take that as a consolation prize." Lincoln said, leaning back as Luan sat right next to him on the left and Lucy to his right. Lynn was about to change the channel when Lori sauntered in and plucked the clicker from her hand.

"Sorry. First born, first serve. And I literally cannot miss this episode of 'Love in the

Links'." the oldest sister said as she tuned in to the soap opera. The assembled kids groaned, but Lynn acted, diving on her older sister.

"It's my turn to pick what to watch!" Lynn shouted, putting Lori into a headlock. Lori growled and elbowed Lynn in the gut. All that did was anger her further, which caused her to put Lori in a half nelson. While they wrestled, Lola slipped over and stole the clicker, changing the channel to her favorite prison pageant show.

"Hey!" Lori and Lynn shouted together. Lola hardly had a chance to respond before they both dogpiled on her. The resulting scuffle kicked up a dust cloud, making it hard to see who was winning.

"I'm coming, Lola!" Lana called, diving from the couch into the fray. She wasn't fond of her twins' choice of shows, but she was still her twin and it was two against one.

"Hehe. This is arguably more amusing than 'Love in the Links'." Luan said with a grin.

"I better stop them…." Lincoln sighed, climbing off the couch. The moment he left his spot, Lucy and Luan scooted over to claim it. He approached the brawl, but before he could say anything, a hand grabbed him by the shirt collar and pulled him in. "Hey!" With the one boy added to the mix simply trying to escape, the fight started to shift around the room, kicking aside furniture as it went. Soon, it was headed right for the table holding the TV.

"No!" Luna, Luan and Leni yelled.

"No." Lucy 'yelled'.

"This can only end poorly…" Lisa said, covering Lily's eyes as well as her own. Then, the inevitable. The four fighting sisters and one trapped brother slammed against the television, stopping only when they heard the tell tale sound of glass shattering.

"Uh oh…"

Back in the present…

"...and yes, we had to pay for it from our own allowances. Me included, even though I was roped in against my will." A very salty Lincoln continued.

"Ok! If Lincoln is done talking to his imaginary friends…" Lori called out, rather annoyed. "...we can begin this emergency sibling meeting regarding the prime time punchout incident."

"Hey, that would be a great name for a pay per view boxing match." Lynn said, grinning as she imagined how that would turn out.

"Because of that little, shall we say, difference of opinions, Mom and Dad have delivered the ultimate ultimatum: One more fight in this house, and everyone involved is grounded until they turn 18."

"I hardly think they are serious, as it would be most unfair to those of us who are younger." Lisa pointed out. "We would have a much longer punishment period when compared to Lori, who would only have a few months to wait."

"I don't think it's worth taking that chance." Lincoln said.

"I second that. Mom and Pop seemed about to blow their tops." Luna agreed.

"But what can we do?" Lucy asked.

"We could stop fighting." Leni suggested, raising her hand.

"That would be great, Leni, but borderline impossible." Lori said as she sat down. "It is an unfortunate fact that, eventually, some of us will argue. When we argue, we tend to get mad. When we get mad, things escalate and fists literally start flying."

"A truism to be sure." Lisa confirmed. "Of course, if we can think of an alternative to fisticuffs, with less collateral damage…"

"The question is what?"

"Perhaps a competition?" Lynn suggested. "Like the Olympic games, only we use the games to settle beefs."

"What does beef have to do with it?" Leni asked, utterly confused. "And aren't the Olympics only held once every few years? I don't think we can wait that long to settle an argument."

"Leni…..nevermind. We'll explain later. As for you, miss suplex, don't you think a sports themed method of settling arguments would give you an unfair advantage?"

"What's your point?" Lynn asked, prompting Lori to facepalm. Lily had started to get a little antsy in Lincoln's lap. An occupational hazard of being the watcher of the youngest during a meeting (beyond obvious diaper changes) was needing to keep her amused. This wasn't usually hard, however, but sometimes caused a disruption to the meeting. Lori was used to this at this point and usually just toned out Lily's play time. Lincoln tried to settle her down by humming a soft lullaby.

"Perhaps debates regarding the issues could bring peaceful resolution…" Lisa started to say.

"How would we settle the debates then?" Lori asked. "We would need impartial judges and I don't think anyone here could say they wouldn't have their own agendas for each side of the argument."

"We could simply seem guidance from the spirits." Lucy offered. "They would have no stake in any conflict."

"Not a 'ghost' of a chance. Hahahaha! But seriously, you're the only one who can talk to them." Luan said. Lily was quickly getting bored of Lincoln's lullaby and had turned around to try and climb up his shirt.

"Hey. What are you up to?" Lincoln whispered as he held Lily by the sides.

"Are you questioning the integrity of the deceased…?" Lucy asked angrily.

"No. I'm questioning whether 'their words' will come from their mouths or yours." Luan retorted.

"That's enough!" Lori yelled as she slammed her shoe gavel on the desk. "We don't need another fight again so soon."

"Sorry…" Lucy and Luan said simultaneously.

"That's better." Just then, Lincoln started laughing. All eyes turned to him to see Lily tickling his midsection as he tried to keep her from climbing over him.

"Hahahahahahaha come on, Lily! This isn't fair hahahhahaha!" A few of the sisters giggled at this sight, even Lori looked amused as she rolled her eyes. Luan, on the other hand, looked at them in a pensive manner. You could almost hear the gears turn in her head until….click!

"I got it!" Luan declared, getting everyone's attention, even Lily's. "Instead of fighting with our fists, we fight with our fingers!"

"Uh….I don't think there is much of a difference there." Lana pointed out.

"Au contraire, Lana. When fighting with fists, we punch and make pain. When fighting with fingers…" she demonstrates by tickling Lana's underarms for a few seconds, making her giggle hysterically. "...we tickle and make laughs."

"Tickle fighting instead of real fighting?" Lori asked in a manner suggesting she may not have heard correctly.

"I'm in!" Leni said enthusiastically.

"I dunno. It sounds really immature to me." Lori commented.

"Actually, Luan may have something there." Lincoln said, rubbing his chin a bit in thought. "Think about it. Usually when we fight, it ends with both sides being tired, accomplishing little, and sometimes with sore feelings over an argument that was probably long forgotten in the chaos."

"Yeah. Now, you'll still get the tiredness and forgetting the problem that started it all with tickle fights, but very few of the bitter feelings...hopefully." Luan said.

"I must side with Lori on this one. The idea seems juvenile, lacks scientific merit and seems like an overall big waste of time." Lisa said, maintaining her deadpan expression.

"Hey, Lees, don't go getting all heavy on us." Luna spoke up. "I'm taking a real shine to the idea. I'm thinking that a lot of us would feel better after a good laugh."

'You might' Lucy thought as a shiver ran down her spine.

"When you put it that way...it's not a bad idea." Lana said after her giggles subsided.

"Yeah. And pretty much everyone is ticklish here, so no one has too much of an advantage." Lola added. Lori shifted her eyes to each sibling, getting a little nervous. She wasn't the only one either; Lisa was sweating a little bit and Lucy was shaking ever so slightly (though it was difficult to tell).

"I'm still not sure…" Lori said in an attempt to stall for time.

"Do you have a better idea?" Luan challenged Lori, crossing her arms in front of her. Lori was silent for several seconds. "I thought not." The eldest sister frowned at the house jester, but proceeded with the meeting.

"Very well...all in favor of Luan's proposal?" She asked. Leni was the first to raise her hand, closely followed by Luan. Lily and Lincoln we're next, along with Luna, Lana and Lola. Lori gulped as she counted the aye votes. Just as she thought she was finished…

"Ah, what the hey? Sounds fun." Lynn finally said, raising her hand.

"Thanks Lynn…" Lori grumbled. "...all opposed?" She knew it was pointless, since more than half of the sisters voted in favor of Luan's suggestion. "...ok then...motion passed. Henceforth, when a dispute is to get physical, it will be resolved with...a tickle fight." Lisa sighed as she heard the bad (for her) news, but then she had a brain storm.

"Pardon the intervention, eldest sister, but I would like to make a minor addendum to the proclamation." Lisa said. "There are those among us who do not utilize force to resolve their issues already. Myself for one. There is also Lily, whose standard defense is to cry for a sibling or parent. And when was the last time one of you saw Lucy throw the first punch? And finally, we have Lincoln, who would receive twice the punishment for harming any of us. I move that those who already use peaceful conflict resolution be excused from this rule."

"Now hold up…" Lola was about to object.

"You make a good point, Lisa. Any objections, Luan?"

"Fine by me, but it means they can't tickle others either, or they'll be fair game."

"I suspect we'll find some way to survive." Lisa commented slightly smugly.

"Thanks…" Lucy whispered.

"You are welcome, though I admit I was looking out more for myself with that one."

"Alright. Addendum 1 to tickle fight rules now state that those who do not use force to solve fights, ie Lisa, Lily, Lincoln and Lucy, are exempt from being engaged in tickle fights. This exemption is nullified the moment they hit one of their siblings or tickle them outside of punishment."

"Anyone caught tickling those who are exempt should get tickled themselves." Luna pointed out.

"Sounds fair." Lisa agreed. Lily looked between Lori and Lincoln for a moment, then bopped her fist against Lincoln's chest. Leni gasped at the sight.

"Lily! That wasn't nice, hitting Lincoln for no reason…." She scolded her. Lily put on her most innocent 'who, me?' face as Lincoln chuckled.

"I think Lily is saying she wants in on the rule." He said, gently tickling Lily's sides to make her laugh.

"Oooh! Lincoln tickled Lily! He's not exempt anymore!" Lola tattled with a grin.

"Heh. Guess I'm not."

"And then there were two…" Lisa groaned. "Well, you can't say I didn't try."

"What's up with you, Lees?" Luna inquired as Lori closed the meeting. "Why are you so against the idea?"

"I made my feelings abundantly clear a few short moments ago." Lisa explained, slightly exasperated. "But if I must repeat myself…"

"Nah. I'm good. But why knock something before you try it? Why not see it in action first before you pass judgement?"

"Hmmm. Perhaps you have a point, elder sister. I am a girl of science after all. Observation of the rule in question could aid in my case against it."

"Not what I meant...but whatever. You do you, little sis." Luna said, shrugging her shoulders as she left.

The next day, Lisa could be found inside her room, typing rapidly on her little computer. Beside her was a little tape recorder and a mug of apple juice. On her head, she was wearing a pair of headphones. After a few minutes of work, a video image of the living room appeared. She could see the TV, the couch from the back, and the back of Lincoln's head, as well as the bottom of the stairs. "There we go. I now have visual access to the living room through the security camera." She said to herself, picking up her recorder. "Lisa's Notes. Observation of the new tickle fight rule in practice. Hypothesis: data received will prove the rule ineffectual and pointless, leading to its immediate nullification. Day one. Location: the living room. Prime site of many physical confrontations, due to being a communal entertainment haven. One sibling subject present: Lincoln Loud. No doubt ready to watch his favorite show. Let us see if he gets preempted from his viewing experience, thereby initiating a fight…"

Down in the living room, Lincoln made himself comfortable on the couch, tuning in to 'ARGGH!', as he was one to do every afternoon. The show airing before it hadn't ended yet, so he had a little time. He pondered getting a little snack when he heard someone descending the stairs. "Hey! Little bro! What are you doing!? Mick Swagger's doing a live concert in a few minutes!" Luna called from the stairs.

"But...I was here first." Lincoln argued from his place on the couch.

"I never missed a Mick Swagger concert and I'm not fixin' on starting now…" Luna warned, climbing onto the banister. "So you better hand over that remote, before I gotta get rough…" Lincoln leaned back on the couch till he was on his back, shaking a bit. Luna was much bigger, and stronger than he was, and even if she weren't, he couldn't fight back without getting into trouble. He was about to give up when he remembered they had changed the rules the other day. He wasn't helpless.

"Sorry, Luna, but I got here first and I want to watch 'ARGGH!'" Lincoln responded firmly.

"You asked for it, bro. Stage dive!" She yelled as she lept from the banister onto the couch. Lincoln closed his eyes, bracing for impact, but Luna had landed just so: with her knees on either side of his legs, trapping them. The landing did make a loud thud though. She grins at him as she dug her fingers into his ribs. "Tickle tickle tickle!"

"Bwahahhahahahahahahahaha!" Lincoln immediately burst into laughter as he squirmed around under her. "Tahahahahahwo can play this gahahahahahame!" With his hands free, he gently squeezed her knees. Luna's eyes bulged a little before she started laughing herself.

"Gahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" the two of them keep tickling each other for a few seconds before Luna decided to change up her tactics. She flipped Lincoln over before turning around and pulling off his shoes and socks. Once he was barefoot, she tightened her hold on his legs and proceeded to skitter all ten fingers along his soles.

"Heeehehehehehehahahahahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahehehehehehahahahahahaha!" Lincoln started to get a little red faced from laughter, but he wasn't licked yet. He could still reach behind himself, and that is exactly what he did, wiggling his fingers on her sides.

"Gahahahahahahahahahahive it up, brahahahahahahahah!"

"Nehehehehehehehehever!" If Luna weren't already laughing, she would have chuckled.

"Yohohohohohou got spunk, Lihihihihihincoln, but I'm nahahahahahahahahahot losing this one!" Luna glided her fingers along his foot, from his toes to his heels. The one son could feel tears slip from between his tightly closed eyelids, Lincoln unable to keep up his counterattack. The rocker could feel her brother's fingers slip away and she became concerned. She flipped him back over, noticing his tears. "You alright there, Linc?"

"Heheheheheheheh yeah...yeah. Just...couldn't keep my arms like that. Kinda hurt after a while." He explained as he caught his breath.

"Had enough?" she asked, clearly concerned for his well being.

"I can still fight." He answered.

"Hehe. You surprise me, bro. But I think it's time to end this. I know your secret spot." She taunted him. Lincoln blinked, thinking she was bluffing. His hopes were dashed as she pulled his shirt past his stomach and wiggled one finger right over his belly. "Last chance." Lincoln shivers a bit, but doesn't say anything. "Suit yourself." she shrugged, her finger going right for his belly button. Lincoln almost literally exploded with laughter.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA OK! YOU WIN HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Luna smiled and pulled her finger away. As her brother started to calm down, they heard the sound of heavy metal and crushing steel and glass. They both turned to the tv to see Lana had changed the channel to a monster truck show. At first, they just stared in disbelief, one of them wanting to say something. But after a few seconds, a smile returned to Luna's face as she started bobbing her head to the music. She climbed off Lincoln and helped him sit up, pulling him close to her so they could watch together.

"Hey...sorry for getting so aggro earlier there, bud." Luna said, gently ruffling his hair.

"Don't worry about. I really should have just let you watch your concert. ARGGH was a rerun today anyway."

"Yeah, well, I coulda just asked you to record the concert too. In fact, Lana, do you mind?" The little animal lover looked back and nodded, programming their cable box to record the concert. "Cheers, luv." The three of them settled in to enjoy the show, but after a few minutes, Luna and Lincoln glanced at each other again. They grinned to one another and went right back to tickling each other again.

In Lisa's room, she was slightly dumbfounded at what she had just witnessed. "Lisa's notes. Observations: as predicted, a confrontation occurred resulting from a conflict in television scheduling. Subjects Lincoln and Luna refused to yield and were forced to initiate the new tickle fight rule. Luna was the eventual victor, but in the end, neither party got what they wanted. However, not only do they seem content, but they found a compromise and even started a new tickle fight. Current data suggests Luan may be right, but it is too early to say anything conclusive. More data required."

"Leni! Is that my sweater!?"

"Opportunity knocks." Lisa muttered, grabbing her notebook and pencil and hurrying toward Lori and Leni's room.

"Well, yeah….but I have an ensemble that would go perfect with it." Leni said with an apologetic grin, holding the offended garment in her hands.

"Leni, we talked about about wearing my clothes…" Lori said warningly.

"But…"

"Leni…." Lori suddenly pointed her finger at Leni like she were aiming a gun at her. "...stick em up!" Leni jumps and holds her arms up, her legs shaking.

"Eek! Lori! Isn't that a little extreme…!?" She asked nervously.

"I don't think so." Lori replied, taking the opportunity to strike. Her fingers went right for Leni's underarms, causing the good natured blonde to squeal with laughter.

"Eeeehehehehehehehahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"

"Give back my sweater, Leni, or else." Lori threatened.

"Ohohohohohohohohohohor else whahahahahahahahahahahat!?" Leni asked in curiosity.

"Or else…." The eldest Loud sister had to pause at that. Under normal circumstances, she would have threatened not to stop tickling her if she didn't. But this was Leni, and she enjoyed tickling. Whether it was dishing it out or taking it, she liked it. A different strategy was required. "Or else I will stop."

"Yahahahahahahahahahahahahou wouldn't!" Leni gasped as she laughed.

"I would." Lori said, her fingers continuing their spider like crawl along her armpits, only more slowly now. "I would and I would never tickle you again."

"Nahahahahaho! No! Here! Tahahahahahahahahahahake it back! Just not thahahahahahahahahahahahahat!" Leni begged as she threw the sweater onto Lori's bed. Lori smirked, thinking that was easy. She sped up her tickling efforts, since Leni had cooperated in the end, making Leni laugh even harder. "Hahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Lori had to giggle a little at this, her younger sister's mirth becoming quite contagious. After about a minute, she decided Leni had enough and had learned her lesson.

"Ok, Leni. I think we're done here. Calm down." She said, Leni still giggling like mad. "Now, what have we learned, Leni?" Leni was about to answer, but then noticed something on her older sisters feet.

"Lori….are those my favorite stockings?" Lori blinks, then slowly looks down. She was indeed wearing a pair of silk socks.

"Oh….um….I guess they are." She admitted sheepishly. Leni just looked at Lori unamused for a moment. Then she just smiled at her.

"That's ok." Leni chirped cheerfully. The oldest sister sighed in relief. Her relief didn't last long, since Leni then reached down and pulled her feet right out from under her. She gasped as she fell, but was fortunate enough to land on her bed. Leni wrapped her arm around Lori's legs, effectively locking them in place, then pulled one of her socks off.

"Leni! Wait! Don't do this!" Lori pleaded.

"Why not? You yelled at me about wearing your clothes, even though you were wearing mine, and even threatened to never tickle me again."

"Leni! Please! I'm sorry!" Lori tries to pull her legs free, but Leni was much stronger than she looked. There was no way she was breaking free. Leni kept her trademark smile on her face as she stroked Lori's bare sole with one finger.

"NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHOOOO!" Lori screamed, laughing her head off. Very few of her siblings knew just how ticklish she was. And unfortunately for her, Leni was one of them. "WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAIT! LENI! LET'S MAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAKE A DEAL HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"A deal? What kind of deal?" Leni asked, pausing her ticklish assault.

"If you let...me wear the stockings….you can wear my sweater….ok?" Leni takes a moment to think about this, keeping Lori's legs trapped in the meantime. While she considered this offer, she twirled her finger along the sole of her sock clad foot.

"EEEEEEAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HOW DOES IT TIHIHIHIHIHIHICKLE MORE!?" Lori screeched.

"It does? They're even more my favorite stockings now!" Leni cheerfully stated. "Ok. I thought about it. Sure. We can swap."

"Actually Leni….I don't think I want to wear these anymore…." Lori said, hastily pulling the other sock off.

"Oh...can I still wear the sweater?"

"...sure."

"Yay!" Leni cheered, grabbing the sweater and hugging in. Neither of them noticed Lisa observing them by their door, which was opened a crack. With the conflict over, Lisa sneaks away, reading over her notes.

"A notable problem that I suspect few among my siblings had considered in the making of this rule." She said to herself. "The fact there are those among their number who do not enjoy the sensation of tickling. Namely, myself, Lucy and Lori. Admittedly, that is the minority and the only one to say anything to remedy that was myself, but I digress. The primary issue is the tickle fight rule could be used to coerce those who do not like being tickled; not unlike threatening Lincoln with violence when fighting back would bring him even more trouble. That said, there is nothing preventing us from fighting back, unlike the old system to my elder brother. My case is building, but I require more information before I can work to overturn this new rule."

Sometime later, in the room belonging to the twins Lana and Lola, a livid Lola was going on a ranting spree while Lana was frowning at Lola's tea table. "I cannot believe it!" Lola yelled. "I spend all after making a delicious chocolate pie for my tea party, and someone goes and swipes it when I go to invite you!"

"That pie was the only reason I was gonna come too. I took a stinking bath for a piece of that pie….A. BATH!" An irritated Lana exclaimed.

"When I find the one responsible...they will PAY!" Lana nodded in agreement, but then noticed something. She looked a little closer at the table, then ran off into the hall. "Lana? Where are you going?" Lola inquired. Her answer came soon, as Lana returned with a magnifying glass.

"Needed to borrow this from Lisa." She explained, taking another look. "Did your pie have a cookie crumb crust?"

"Yes. Chipless chocolate chip cookie crumbs." Lola confirmed. Her mud loving twin raises an eyebrow at her. "I had to use the chips to finish the filling. Chocolate doesn't last here."

"Fair enough." Lana commented. "Point being, we have a clue." She added, picking up a cookie crumb. She turns toward the floor, checking it with the magnifying glass. "And a trail." Lola ran over for a look and found her twin to be correct: there was a trail of tiny cookie crumbs leading out into the hall.

"Good work, Lana!" Lola said with a smile, patting her sister on her hat clad head. "Now let's go find us a pie thief." The two of them start to follow the trail; out into the hall, down the stairs, through the lower levels of the house, then finally out into the backyard. It was there the crumb trail ended. However, there was someone out in the yard: Lucy. "LUCY!"

"...What?" The goth girl asked, turning toward the bellowing belle.

"You stole our pie!" Lola screamed, storming over to her spooky sister.

"What pie?"

"Don't play dumb! Now where is it!?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Lucy said, stepping back from her wrathful sister.

"You're asking for it…." Lola said threateningly, wiggling her fingers. If Lucy weren't already pale, she would have gone white as a ghost at this sight. She held her hands in between her and Lola to defend herself.

"Lo! Wait!" Lana suddenly dashed between her younger and older sister, holding Lola back. "Lucy is off limits, remember?"

"Oh…..right…" Lola sighed, lowering her hands.

"Whew….thanks Lana." Lucy said, a hint of panic in her voice. Lana would have found this strange, but she was interrupted by a soft smack in the back of the head. Lucy had accidently hit Lana when she lowered her own hands.

"Ah! What was that for!?" Lana questioned, a little hurt.

"Eep. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…" Lucy hastily apologized.

"Well well, looks like a certain pie thief lost her immunity." Lola taunted with a grin.

"Wait! I didn't take your pie. I swear. My hands are clean." Lucy said fearfully, nearly curling up into a ball. It was so unusual to see Lucy scared, it actually threw Lola off her wrath. Lana gently took one of her hands and looks closer at it.

"She's right. Not a speck of chocolate." Lana confirmed.

"Same with her face." Lola said, looking at the frightened Lucy's face. "And no way she had time to clean up back here."

"Sorry about that, Lucy." Lana apologized, helping Lucy stand. "Lola's just upset since she worked so hard on that pie."

"...apology accepted." Lucy responded, her voice quivering a bit.

"Still leaves us with the question of who stole my pie…" The twins started to put their heads together and ponder this question when Luan vaulted over the back fence and casually strolled toward the house. Her lips were covered in chocolate. "FREEZE, COCOA-CROOK!" Lola screeched, tackling the surprised joker. Lana tried to slow her twin down, but then shrugged and ran over to join them. Lola sat on Luan's back, mercilessly tickling her underarms, while Lana sat on her lower legs, skittered her fingers along the backs of her knees.

"Whahahahahahahahahahahahahat's this about hahahahahahahahahahahaha!?" Luan asked through her hysteric laughter.

"You stole my chocolate pie!" Lola shouted.

"Nahahahahahahohohohohohohohohoho I didn't!"

"Then why do you have chocolate all over your face?" Lana asked.

"I jahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahust bought a chahahahahocolate bar! Check my pohohohohohohohohohohocket!" Lola was skeptical, but motioned Lana to check her pockets. A quick search revealed a large bar of chocolate.

"Whoa! Is this a Bakee's bar!?" Lana asked excitedly.

"You mean the one with little fudge brownies in the middle!?" Lola also inquired.

"Yes. Yes it is." Luan replied, quite irked as she got the twins off her back and got back on her feet, reclaiming her treat.

"Can we have a little piece, Luan?" Lana asked in her sweetest tone.

"Pweeeeeease?" Both twins asked at once, giving her the big puppy dog eyes. Luan sighed, but relented, giving each a small piece of chocolate. They pop the confection into their mouths, the chocolately taste sent them into a sort of trance. Luan looks over at Lucy, who had calmed down.

"They got you too?" She asked.

"Almost." Lucy replied quietly. Luan broke a third piece off and tossed it to her with a smile. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it. You've earned some 'brownie points' with me lately. Hahahaha!" Lucy didn't laugh at her wordplay, but did thoroughly enjoy the chocolate.

"We still haven't found our pie pilferer…" Lola commented after savoring the Bakee bar piece.

"What could we be missing?" Lana wondered. Just then, they heard the clatter of tin behind them. All eyes turned to the backdoor to find Lily standing there, babbling as she smack the back of a pie tin like it were a drum, her face covered in chocolate.

"Lily? You stole the pie?" Lola asked, the pageant princess and her twin walking over to the infant. She looked back up at them, a big smile on her face.

"That wasn't very nice, Lily." Lana said, a bit of a smirk on her face.

"Yeah. But since you're so young and it's your first offense...we can let you off with a warning tickle." Lola said as both the twins lightly tickled her belly, making Lily laugh so hard that she fell back onto her rear. "Oh! Are you ok?"

"Poo poo." Lily said with a nod.

Back inside Lisa's room, she was tapping her pencil against her notebook, nibbling on a slice of chocolate pie in front of her. The remainder of the pie, minus two more slices, was sitting on a tray on her work table behind her. She wasn't alone either. Lori was sitting by her, a look of bliss on her face as she ate a forkful of one of the two slices of pie on her plate. "Lisa's notes. I was forced to accept an accomplice for the purpose of this next test. It cost me two slices of pie, plus my integrity in implicating my baby sister for the theft, and I am questioning if it was worth it. Data shows that whether force or tickling is used, false accusations will still occur. Nothing profound, as we are still human. However, I have noticed how Lana and Lola took note of Lucy's disposition and didn't tickle her without checking for proof. It cannot be said if this has any bearing on the rule. Conclusion: almost a complete waste of time. On a side, non-scientific note, Lola makes a marvelous chocolate pie."

"Totally. I literally have to get the recipe." Lori said with a sigh.

A few hours later, about an hour till dinner time, Rita and Lynn Sr had pulled up into the driveway. "What a day." Rita commented, brushing some strands of floss from her jacket.

"Tell me about it. I've never seen the restaurant so busy...do you think the kids will mind leftovers for dinner tonight?" Lynn Sr asked, stepping out of Vanzilla and wincing a bit as his back cracked.

"Your leftovers, dear? They're always up for that." Rita replied with a smile, kissing him on the cheek. The Loud patriarch chuckles a bit as they opened the front door. They were greeted by a somewhat unusual sight: Luna, Luan, Leni, Lynn Jr, Lincoln and Lana in a pile, all barefoot and tickling each other's feet with fingers and feathers. Lola was sitting on the couch, also barefoot, giggling up a storm. "Alright…what are you kids fighting over this time?" Their father asked, looking a little perplexed.

"Hahahahahahahahwho's fighting!?" Lana asked.

"We're hahahahahahahahahahaha just playing Dahahahahahahahahad!" Leni explained.

"Wahahahahahahahahahahe're seeing who cahahahahahahahahahahahan take it longer! And it's gonnahahahahahahahahahahahaha be mehehehehehehehehehehe!" Lynn Jr declared. Their parents just looked at each other for a moment, then Rita just giggled, while Lynn Sr just smiled lightly.

"Ah….ok then. Well, don't overdo it. Oh, and we had a long day today, so it's leftovers today. Just heat up what you like when you're hungry."

"Sahahahahahahahahure thing, Popstahahahahahahahar." Luna responded. The parents carefully stepped past their kids, headed for their room. While the kids were all having fun in the living room, Lucy was peeking out at them from the stairs. She gives one of her trademark sighs, which was unheard by most of the siblings. However, one practically had a sixth sense for when someone was unhappy. Luan looked up toward the stairs, just in time to see Lucy dart just out of sight. Sensing something amiss, Luan crawls away from the pile. At the same time, so did Lincoln.

"Hehehehehehehehehehehe….ok. I'm out." He admitted, joining Lola on the couch.

"Good try, Linky. You lasted five minutes." Lola told him. "You too, Luan."

"Hehehehehe...yeah. Excuse me a moment." Luan said, getting to her feet and walking to the stairs. Lucy took the opportunity to quietly creep upstairs and into her room. However, Luan had seen her door close. The family prankster scaled the stairs and gently knocked on the door. No response. "Knock knock."

"Nobody's home. This is a recording…." A monotone voice replied. Luan snickered.

"Points for trying, Luce, but I know you're in there." She told her. "Is something bothering you, spooky sis of mine?"

"What isn't bothering me, Luan?"

"Ok. Let me rephrase that." Luan had opened the door and stepped over to Lucy's coffin bed. "Has something new been bothering you recently?" Lucy refused to say anything, or to even look at Luan. "Come on, Lucy. You know you can tell me anything."

"I don't think you'll understand…."

"Try me."

"Sigh...I guess there are two things bothering me. First….I fell somewhat...left out."

"You mean, left out of our game? You could have joined us, silly. We wouldn't have excluded you."

"That…leads to the second thing….I….I'm…" Lucy's cheeks turn a bright pink as she mumbled the last words.

"Come again?" Lucy once more was barely audible. "One more time. They can't hear you in the cheap seats." Luan joked.

"...I'mscaredofbeingtickled." Lucy suddenly said, speaking faster than she ever had. Luan was able to get the gist, and was she ever surprised.

"You? The Duchess of the dark?" Luan asked in shock.

"I *sniff* know it sounds silly….but there is something about the fact that...when I'm tickled...I'm forced to laugh. Even if I don't feel like it. I don't like that...it scares me." a few tears trickle down from behind her bangs. This was the last thing Luan expected from Lucy. For someone so used to the macabre, the supernatural, and the like, she expected something much bigger and darker to scare her little sister. Then again, something about it kinda made sense.

"I think I get it. Sort of." Luan said, taking a seat beside her. "But why didn't you say so during the meeting? We would have put your feelings into consideration."

"It's too embarrassing…who else do you know is afraid of getting tickled…?"

"Personally, no one. But I do know such a phobia exists."

"Come again?"

"There is a tickling phobia. A few of them, actually. So that must mean it's more common than you think, right?" Luan looks over at Lucy, but couldn't tell if her words had any impact. "But that's not the point, is it? The point is you don't like it…"

"I don't. But…" Lucy hesitated for a moment, piquing Luan's interest. "...like you said earlier...when you were all playing together...I felt very left out. I wanted to be a part of it...but I'm scared of being tickled…"

"That is quite the little tickle pickle you have there…" Luan commented, scratching her head. Then, it was as if a light bulb went off in Luan's head. "You said before that you were afraid of tickling because it made you laugh even when you didn't want to, right?"

"Yes…?" Lucy answered, wondering where she was going with this.

"Well, what if you wanted to laugh?"

"I'm not sure I follow…"

"If you want to laugh, then the tickling isn't forcing it, is it? It's just helping it get out." Lucy had to think about Luan's statement. While it sounded like a load of blatherskite to her, she also couldn't deny it was very possible.

"I guess…?"

"So the big question is….do you want to laugh?" Luan asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. Lucy stared silently toward the ground for several minutes, but Luan was patient and remained by her side.

"I suppose." She finally replied. Luan smiled softly, reaching one arm around her and the other arm to the side closer to her.

"Then I'm gonna give you a little tickle. Nothing to be scared of. Just your silly, loving sister wanting to put a smile on your face. Understand?" Lucy nods her head, though a chill ran down her spine. Luan's fingers make contact with Lucy's rib and she gently glided her fingers along them. Lucy burst out in a fit of giggles, hastily moving away from her.

"Hehe….hehe…sorry…."

"Awwwww, don't worry, Luce." Luan giggled softly, petting her on the head. "You said you were scared before. It's a natural response." Lucy nods lightly, taking a few seconds to calm down. "Wanna give it one more try?"

"...one more, I guess." Lucy responded. Luan shifts over to her little sister and started spider crawling five fingers across Lucy's stomach.

"Hehehehehehe!" Lucy fell into nonstop giggles again, curling up and inadvertently trapping her hand.

"Oops! Hehehe. Gotta 'hand' it to you for being so brave, Lucy, in facing your fear. However, I'm gonna need my hand back, please." Lucy blushes a little as she straightened up, letting her joking sister's hand free.

"I'm still reacting out of fear…" she said sadly. "...but I guess fear doesn't just go away overnight."

"Exactly." Luan said, patting her on the back. "But you made some real progress. Where you go from here, it's up to you, but one thing I recommend you do is tell the others how you feel. I'm sure they'll leave you alone if you let them know that it scares you."

"...you really think so?" Luan gave her a confident nod, then gave her a reassuring hug. "...thanks Luan."

"Anytime, sis."

A few days later, Lisa stood over a scattered collection of papers on her desk, standing upon a tall stool so she could see her notes. Instead of her usual flat, calculating look, she had a more frustrated, angry look. She clenched her hands into little fists, then slammed them on the table and shoved her papers off the surface. "Nothing!" She yelled, getting Lily's attention in her crib. "Four days of observation, and all I have to show for it is the same data I received on day one and a nagging guilt…" She sighed angrily, climbing off the stool. Under normal circumstances, consistent data like what she had would have been phenomenal. However, she was trying to prove why the tickle fight rule should be abolished, and her own data showed that, even with the one key problem she was able to prove, it was still effective. This was not what she wanted to learn. She started to pace about the room, being watched by the young infant who shared her room with her.. "The data is useless to me…" she muttered. "There is no way I can get the rule overturned at this rate…"

"Wisa.." Lily said, the toddler genius giving the baby her undivided attention. "Waala mooma poo poo?"

"True. I am still exempt from falling prey to a ticklish attack. I am the only one. But it is the principle of the matter, Lily. I cannot simply accept defeat." The baby Loud rolled her eyes at that statement.

"Oogoo gaagaa la Wynn."

"I am NOT acting like Lynn." Lisa objected. "Why am I even arguing with you…?" Lisa inquired with a facepalm. She turns her back to Lily, taking her musings where she thought they belonged: in her own mind. 'There is no way I will convince my sibling units of my logic with my notes. However, perhaps it isn't them I should focus on, but our parental units. It is their domicile and therefore, their word is final law. If they were to say this tickle fight rule should end, then it will end. And I think I have just the thing…'

"Hmmm. Nothing on tonight…" Lana commented, sitting with Lynn Jr on the couch as they considered what to watch that evening. She was looking through the tv guide, while Lynn channel surfed.

"No luck on my end, either." Lynn grumbled. She was about to give up when she came across a wrestling match. "Sweet! The RWWF!"

"Cool! Who's fighting?"

"Looks like it's the Mortician and Viper Joe." Lynn said as the camera got close up to the wrestlers.

"Awesome! Take him down, Joe!"

"Ha! That's a laugh. The Mortician's way out of his league."

"Nuh uh!" Lana denied, sticking her tongue out at her older sister.

"Yah huh!" Lynn countered with a smug smile.

"Oh yeah!?" Lana suddenly pounced on Lynn, knocking her off the side of the couch. The moment they hit the ground, Lana proceeded to tickle Lynn's sides.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"So, who's gonna win?" Lana asked with a grin.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ME!" Lynn pushed Lana off of her and into her back, then started tickling her feet. "Take that!"

"GAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Give it up, Lana. You're up against Lynn the champ!"

"OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO YEAH! YOU FORGEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHET WHO CAME IN FIRST AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA IN THE ROYAL WOODS AHAHAHAHALLIGATOR WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP!?" Before Lynn could answer, Lana rolls back away from her, then pounced on her like a wild cat. The two of them rolled around on the rug, laughing hysterically as they tickled one another wherever they could reach. Their tickle wrestling caused them to bump into the fireplace, the impact causing a vase set upon the mantle to teeter, totter...then suddenly burst into pieces.

"Huh?" Lynn asked, ceasing her tickling as she looks at the pieces of porcelain on the floor.

"Uh oh…." Lana gulped.

"What was that!?" Their mother asked, hurrying into the room. She took one look at the broken vase, then the two children, who looked like they had been wrestling.

"Mom! We can explain!" Lana nervously and hastily said, crawling away from Lynn and sitting on her knees on the carpet.

"That worked better than I thought." Lisa said to herself, smiling lightly as she watched the scene unfold on her hidden camera. "Now, if my calculations are correct, Mother will scold them and then put an end to this silly tickle fight rule."

"I warned you about fighting…" Rita said, sounding quite angry.

"We weren't fighting, Mom. We were just tickle wrestling." Lynn explained, joining Lana on her knees.

"Well, that counts as fighting in my book."

"What!?"

"Say what…?" Lisa asked in shock. "Oh no….how did I not factor that element into my equation!? By Babbage, I cannot let this happen!" Lisa lept off her chair and ran right out the door, past the disapproving look of Lily.

"But Mom...we didn't even knock it over!" Lana pleaded. "It just kind of…broke."

"Do you really expect me to believe that?" She asked them, her arms crossed in front of her.

"But it's the truth…" Lynn replied, tears in her eyes.

"I think I've heard enough….I warned you what would happen if you fought again, and you not only did, but broke an irreplaceable vase given to me by my great grandmother….Lynn Jr, Lana...you are…"

"Mother! Stay your hand!" Lisa yelled, leaning against the bottom step, gasping for air. Rita, Lynn and Lana all look to the four year old in surprise. "They are not to blame for the destruction of the vase."

"What? But they were the only ones here."

"True, but I assure you that it was not them…it was I."

"Huh? But how did you…?" Lana asked.

"I rigged the vase to shatter via remote control...or, more accurately, I rigged a 3d printed replica of your vase to shatter via remote control." She explained, pulling the real urn from behind her back, walking over to hand it to Rita. "I also created a weighted stand that could prevent it from possibly falling over in the future. It's quite unstable."

"But...why did you do it, Lisa?" Rita asked, having a little trouble processing what just happened.

"I admit, I wanted to see the new tickle fight rule our siblings set into place repealed." Lisa explained. "I felt it was an infantile and useless, having no scientific merit behind it. I had tried to collect data to prove my point, but I had ended up finding more positive elements than negative. Without enough evidence to support my cause, I thought I could stage an incident with which to have the rule banned."

"Wait...you tried to get us in trouble just to get rid of the tickle fight rule!?" Lynn Jr asked incredulously.

"A low blow, I admit, and I humbly apologize, sisters."

"But why, Lisa? You were immune to tickles." Lana asked, looking very hurt.

"My stubborn pride, Dear Lana...I could not admit defeat in my endeavor...but seeing you about to possibly be grounded until you reached the age of 18...I realized I couldn't allow such an injustice….Mother, while your precious heirloom remains unharmed, I still acknowledge fault for my actions and I am prepared to face the consequences…"

"Oh, Lisa….I wasn't serious about grounding you all for that long. I just really upset and wanted to get you all to stop fighting before you hurt yourselves seriously."

'so I was right about that…' Lisa thought.

"But you are right. While the vase is still in one piece, the fact you tried to frame your sisters was wrong and you should be punished. However, I'm not going to punish you."

"Oh...that is rather generous of you, Mother." A surprised little genius said.

"Now just a moment, Lisa. I said I wouldn't punish you...because I'm going to let Lana and Lynn decide." Lisa's pupils shrank to pinpricks as Lynn and Lana smirk to one another, then at Lisa.

"Oh...um….oh dear, is that the time?" Lisa asked nervously, holding up an arm that didn't even have a watch. "I do believe I have...uh...slime molds to tend to." She added hastily, making a mad dash up the stairs, her older sisters hot on her heels. They were too quick for her and had her pinned to the ground in no time. "Ok! Ok! I admit, I deserve this...but please...be gentle…"

"Don't worry, Lisa. We won't be too rough on you." Lana said, grinning as she took one of Lisa's shoes.

"Yeah." Lynn agreed, taking the other shoe. Lisa braced herself, closing her eyes as Lynn and Lana each used one finger to tickle her feet. The little brainiac immediately broke down laughing, kicking her little legs and squirming about.


End file.
